It's a dud

A proposal to legalize consumer fireworks in Michigan promises to raise money for state coffers, but may not be able to deliver much bang for the buck.

And a side effect could very well be more danger for state residents.

Presently in Michigan, as a general rule, anything that explodes or shoots up into the air is an illegal fireworks, or requires special permits for professional-grade displays. That means bottle rockets, firecrackers and Roman candles are all illegal. Sparklers and sparkler fountains are about it for this state.

Yet we all know that such fireworks are common, being bought legally across state lines or on Native American property. All summer long we are subject to insufferable bangs and blasts in the middle of the night — escalating in the weeks surrounding the Fourth of July.

An effort which just passed the Michigan House, though, would make those more dangerous pyrotechnics legal, and provide for the sale and transportation of said explosives to the consumer.

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These bills, though, would narrowly define who can store and sell fireworks. Legislation eliminates those roadside stands we’ve all seen by requiring a store be a minimum of 1,000 square feet, while shutting out giant retailers in capping the size at 12,000 square feet.

The bills would assess a fee of $5,000 to be a fireworks store, $2,500 for each annual renewal and $5,000 for every vehicle which transports fireworks.

Consumers would pay an extra sales surcharge when they buy the devices.

Money from all of this would go to the state’s fire safety fund and inspection of new consumer fireworks operations.

The proposals would ban the detonation of fireworks from 1 a.m. to 9 a.m. during the holidays, midnight to 10 a.m. otherwise. If people would just abide by that, then a new law would be worth it.

Legislation would also bar use/possession by people younger than age 18 and bar consumer fireworks on public property or private property unless expressly permitted by the land owner.

The proposed laws would make it a state civil infraction subject to a fine of up to $500. But getting caught with illegal fireworks in Michigan today is a misdemeanor, punishable by 90 days in jail and/or $500 fine.

Prosecutions are rare. Emmet County Sheriff Pete Wallin said his deputies usually settle complaints by telling late-night rocketeers to cut it out and by confiscating illegal fireworks.

He’s not wild about a change in the law.

From an expense point of view, he sees the proposed law as being all about getting money — none of which would be headed to the sheriff’s departments for new enforcement.

From a safety point of view, Wallin and other law officials including Emmet County prosecutor James Linderman and Petoskey Department of Public Safety Director John Calabrese say having greater numbers of the more dangerous fireworks in circulation would probably lead to more access, which could mean more injuries (and more rowdy noise complaints).

“We’ll see how many people turn up in the emergency room with missing fingers,” Wallin said.

Legal or not, fireworks are a reality. Michigan’s current law does not stop them or prevent injury, from what we can see. It begs the question: Why not capture some of the millions of dollars spent each year on this activity?

These proposed bills, House Bills 5999-6000, don’t seem to provide any sure benefit to Michigan in their current form. The costs to become a retailer seem extreme, the scope of who can sell is too narrow, making it unclear whether the state would see any real new revenue. There is no provision to pay for stepped up enforcement by local law agencies and little obvious merit into placing more dangerous explosives legally into the hands of state residents.